The Renewable Energy Handbook: A Guide To Rural Energy Independence, Off-Grid And Sustainable Living

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The Renewable Energy Handbook: A Guide To Rural Energy Independence, Off-Grid And Sustainable Living

List Price: $29.95
Lowest Price: $18.25

Product Description:

As oil prices continue to rise, many people are starting to think about how to unhook from the power grid. The Renewable Energy Handbook focuses completely on off-grid, sustainable living and energy independence in a rural setting.

Author William Kemp and his wife designed their own high-efficiency off-grid home in 1991. They worked methodically to produce a home which has all of the standard "middle-class" creature comforts while using six times less heating, cooling, and electrical energy than the average Ontario home. Soon they were inundated with inquiries and decided to put their experience into book form in 2003.

This updated edition focuses specifically on off-grid concerns and contains chapters on:

Energy conservation
Heating and cooling
Photovoltaic, wind and microhydro energy generation
Battery selection, voltage regulation and inverters
Backup power

Twice the page count of the first edition, it also includes enhanced chapters on home and domestic water heating, wireless communications and biofuels. A "Showcase of Homes" chapter provides a tour of various off-grid cottages and homes, and details the type of lifestyle that can be achieved for a given capital cost. The book is augmented with appendices and hundreds of illustrations, line drawings and photographs.

William Kemp is VP Engineering of Powerbase Automation Systems Inc. and a consulting electronics/software designer who develops control systems for low environmental impact hydroelectric utilities worldwide. He is a sustainable living and clean energy advocate working in renewable energy heating, energy efficiency, photovoltaic, microhydro and wind electric systems.

Customer Reviews:

Rating:
Date: 2008-06-27
Awesome book!
Helpful and informative. Easy to understand diagrams and explanations in plain English (i.e. you don't have to be ultra-tech-savvy to understand it).

Rating:
Date: 2008-06-18
informative
Lots of useful info. Gives you a new way to look at the world.

Rating:
Date: 2008-06-18
The Good and Bad
I would have given this book a four-star rating if not for the preaching that permeated each chapter. I didn't buy this book to learn how to save the planet from evil, wasteful humans. Having written that, the author does a good job explaining varied methods to exist without relying on the commercial power grid. Descriptions on different methods/technologies to accommodate the want to be self-sufficient when it comes to electrical power are comprehensive.

Rating:
Date: 2008-06-05
Renewable Energy Handbook
William Kemp does an excellent job of explaining and organizing your options for renewable energy sources. Even for the beginner, this is an easy to read and understand, and can be used as a reference guide. I bought this book to understand my options for my new build.

Rating:
Date: 2008-06-02
Renewable Energy Handbook
This book is worthless, It's best use would be to use the pages to start the fire in your wood stove. The writer wastes more then half the book to expound his religion. The information that is provided is out dated and just a reprint of manufacturers information. Don't waste your money or your time.

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